All is Fair
by Dominae
Summary: From the sidelines, being a superhero sounds pretty awesome. Unfortunately, I found out the hard way that you don't always win, and tight leather suits really, really chafe. So yeah, it's actually not that great.
1. Dumpster Girl

* * *

Before everything happened, I was completely normal. I had a perfect white picket fence family, with a loving mother and father. I even had a rosy-cheeked, golden-haired little munchkin for a baby brother. It was perfect. Nothing exciting ever happened, and I was usually happy to live a little mundane life.

Sure, I would sometimes wish that something would shake it all up and I could do something ultra-cool and dangerous, but then I would realize that I just wasn't meant for danger. I was a fragile little flower with the cowardly heart of an opossum and nothing would ever change that. Of course, I'm usually wrong, and this time was following that tradition. As a matter of fact, I remember perfectly when things started to change. Strangely enough, it was a normal day in the Bayville High School cafeteria, and I was eating the normal unidentifiable meal with my normal lunch mate, Tamara Delton.

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I slumped down on the bench, picking at what looked like a pile of green beans. I could dimly hear Tamara chattering, but most of what she said was getting lost in an ocean of other voices. It was probably for the better; I was enjoying a very pleasant pity party.

"Gertrude!"

As I flicked my gaze to Tamara, an angry scowl forming.

"We both know I like to be called Emily. Even if my beloved parents decided to give me that name, that doesn't mean I have to go by it."

She snorted, her nose crinkling adorably. I wish my nose crinkled adorably when I snorted, but it just turned into something resembling a pig's snout. Not that I'm jealous, or anything.

"Yeah, but I knew calling you that would get your attention. Not to mention, I enjoy annoying you, Emily. Besides, you weren't hearing anything I said. C'mon, you've been ignoring everything for the last few days. I know you enjoy wallowing in self-pity, but you really gotta get over Colton."

My stomach lurched as she spoke his name. Colton Columbus, the sweetest guy to ever walk the halls of Bayville High. Colton Columbus, the new kid. Colton Columbus, the person who'd stolen my heart and then moved away with it. Appearing as uncaring as I could, I stated, "I _am_ over him, Tammy. Believe me. If any guy were to ask me out right now, I would be all like, hot damn! Of course I'll go out with you, Mister Hunkmeister. You know why I'll go out with you? Because I'm freakin' over Colton Columbus!"

She raised a dark eyebrow in disbelief. I probably would have been more convincing if I hadn't sniffled at the end of my little rant. Tamara sighed, and gestured at my fork-holding hand. "You're still wearing the ring he gave you, and he moved _months_ ago, Em."

I glanced at my finger, where the little silver band rested, the blue sapphire eye sparkling merrily. "So what? It's pretty. Am I not allowed to wear pretty things now, Tam-Tam?"

She sighed again and suddenly got up, walking away without a word. I blinked, then turned back to the glop of food on my plate. A lightbulb appeared over my head, and I took the opportunity to scrape the filth from my plate onto Tamara's. As I finished relocating my food, she reappeared, taking no heed of the mounds of extra food. Tamara plopped back down on the bench, a smirk on her face. She stared at me quietly, until I couldn't take the silence anymore. "What did you do?"

She leaned forward, whispering, "I got you a date."

My face paled until it resembled the underbelly of a fish. "You're lying."

She shook her head, braids swinging wildly. "Nope. You're meeting Isley McMahon after school for a soda. _Please_ don't wear the ring."

Tamara gave a quick grin, and left me to stew in fear.

* * *

Roughly three and a half hours later, I started towards my doom, keeping an exaggeratedly slow pace. I contemplated just blowing the whole thing off and heading home, but I knew that Tamara would find out. I shuddered; I didn't want to think about the agony she would subject me to. I was already being daring by keeping my ring on. Well, daring for me. Everything is relative.

I dragged my feet as I saw Alien Lunch. It wasn't a really appetizing name, but it had somehow managed to become the local hangout. Tamara thought they'd managed to gain their popularity with their strangely delicious neon drinks, but I was still betting that they had made a deal with some local gang. I was still holding onto that belief mainly because I enjoy being contrary, but I would never admit it to her.

I rubbed my sweaty palms on my jeans as I approached the door, desperately trying to calm my nerves. As it turned out, I really didn't need to worry about the date. It wasn't going to happen. I grasped the handle of the door, my heart thumping in my ears.

My breath turned shallow, and I frowned slightly. I was used to being nervous, but this was ridiculous. My eyes began to dim, and I fell back, just barely catching myself. Through the glass windows of the building, I could see a redhead elbow the boy sitting next to her, a brown-haired guy with tinted sunglasses. Normally I would have noticed that it was Jean Grey, one of the most popular girls in school, and Scott Summers, that guy who had a rival with her boyfriend, but I was kind of distracted what with the stomach lurching, rapid heartbeat, and overall panic.

With the stupidity that usually accompanies fear, I stumbled into an alley, away from help. I collapsed onto the ground, shaking. I heard someone call out, but the words were unclear. My mind felt as if it was slipping away from the world, and I desperately searched for an anchor of any kind. In a bit of an odd decision, my eyes chose to focus on a dumpster. A burning fire ran through my veins, until I could feel the blood boiling. I shrieked in pain as I felt my skin split outwards, as if someone had yanked a loose thread. My flesh was replaced by the uneven green metal of a dumpster, and the pain vanished. Unfortunately, this brought up a worse situation, as I was suddenly without any ability to breathe or see. I tried to scream, but I didn't have a mouth. I couldn't even move.

As my mind began to darken, a clear voice cut through the blackness. "_Listen to me. Follow my voice, and it'll all be okay."_

I'm usually not inclined to listen to voices in my head, but there wasn't much else to do. So I followed.

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A/N: This was supposed to be up much, much, much earlier, but family dropped by unexpectedly.

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	2. Freak

When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was the pain. My skin felt raw, as if it had been rubbed off, and all of my bones ached. I rubbed eyes, wincing as my joints protested. As the blurriness reduced, I realized something strange. I wasn't in my room, and there seemed to be a large blue Bigfoot hovering over me. I blinked. He seemed to be wearing glasses. I didn't know Bigfoot needed glasses. Actually, I didn't know Bigfoot was blue either. I blinked again, and the Bigfoot smiled at me. As I stared at him blankly, he took a penlight out and shined it in my eyes.

A look of satisfaction crossed his face as he spoke. "Good. You seem to be fine, just a little dazed," he chuckled quietly and continued, "otherwise you would probably be rather scared. I assure you though, I'm quite harmless. My name is Dr. Henry McCoy, though most people call me Hank or Beast."

In a bid to protect my sanity, I decided that this was a dream. A stunningly realistic dream, other than me being in a medical ward with a blue Bigfoot named Hank. I frowned, realizing that he had been talking. Seeing my confused look, he repeated, "Do you remember anything of yesterday?"

I furrowed my brow in thought and replied, "No, not really. I remember eating lunch with Tamara, but it's pretty much a blank after that. Not surprising though...most of my boring classes are in the end of the day. Why?"

Hank pulled a large, custom-made rolling chair up and sat down, his face deadly serious. "What I'm about to tell you may seem unbelievable, but every word is true. There are people, mutants, in the world with special powers. Fire, ice, flight...the standard comic book staples are all possible. These powers generally develop in puberty at moments of extreme emotion, as yours did yesterday. Usually the activation of your powers is just distressing, but it can result in harm if you panic and overreach yourself. It was a nice bit of luck that Scott and Jean found you."

I shook my head in disbelief. "Listen, this has been a nice dream and all, but I think I'm ready to wake up now."

I pinched myself roughly, gasping in pain. I frowned. Everything had stayed the same other than Hank's expression turning to one of amusement, which I resented. A _swoosh _cut through the air, and I twisted around in my bed to see a door slide open. I smiled thinly; my dreams didn't usually come with such good sound effects. A bald man in a wheelchair entered the room, followed by Jean and Scott. I muttered a curse; this dream was rapidly becoming annoying. It was almost as bad as that one I'd had about the ducks. Pulling myself up into a sitting position, I waved a dismissive hand around the room. "Everyone out, okay? This dream is officially closed!"

The bald man wheeled up to my bed, and steepled his fingers with a serious expression. I got the impression that that was a very familiar look for him. "This isn't a dream, Emily. I assure you, it is all very real. I am Professor Charles Xavier, the owner of the Xavier Institute, a sanctuary for mutants."

I shook my head in exasperation and made to get off the bed. As soon as my feet touched the floor, pain shot through them. I yelped and fell forward, closing my eyes in anticipation as the shiny tiles came rushing up to me. My face wouldn't feel good, but at least the floor was clean. It's important to look on the bright side. As I waited for the upcoming face smashing, I realized that it was taking a very long time. I opened my eyes, and frowned as I saw that the floor was the same distance as it had been a few moments ago. I looked up, raising an eyebrow as I saw Jean holding her hands out towards me with a strained expression.

I stared at her in confusion and she mumbled, "Do you mind standing on your own? You're kind of heavy."

I braced my hands on what seemed to be an invisible shield, and lifted myself up, resolving to join a gym or something. You know it's bad when your weight is insulted in a dream. Not that it's good when it's insulted in the real world, or anything like that. Brushing myself off needlessly, I nodded my head to Jean. "Thanks. Let me guess, you're a mutant too?"

Scott spoke for her. "Everyone in this room is, including you."

I rolled my eyes, and crossed the room tentatively. My feet still didn't feel particularly good, and I was almost certain that my cat was biting them while I slept. I stood before the metal walls, ignoring the apprehensive looks everyone was casting in my direction. I eyed the walls; they looked every bit as hard and real as I would expect them to in real life. Steeling my nerves, I readied my arm. Normally I would enjoy having a dream where I was a superhero, but I didn't like it when I wasn't able to wake up when I wanted to. Pinching my arm might not have worked, but I was fairly certain that punching a metal wall would wake anyone up, no matter what. My arm sailed towards the wall, cutting a path through the air. My fist halted right by the wall and I turned around to the Professor, who was gazing at me intently. I cocked my head slightly. I had fully intended to hit that wall, but I just didn't feel like it anymore. Either I was really lazy, which wasn't impossible, or I had just had my brain messed with. I was kind of going with the second one, since everyone seemed to have some sort of trick up their sleeves.

As I looked fixedly at the Professor, he spoke slowly, **"This is not a dream, Emily. Realize that and remember."**

I grinned as I wiped some drool from the corners of my mouth (not quite sure how that happened) and gave him a thumbs up. I stood quietly for a moment, and then the truth hit me like an unwelcome train. My eyes wide, I slumped onto the very real floor. My voice low, I said, "God...oh, God. I'm...I'm not a human anymore? I'm some sort of _freak_?"

I'd used to picture myself as a superhero. But it had never been like this. I was never scared of what I was, or what people would think. Now it was all I could think about. What would mom and dad say? What about my brother? How would he react? Oh God, what if he was like me? I was so absorbed in my thoughts, Scott's words barely got through.

"You're _not_ a freak. You're human, just different."

Jean echoed his sentiments, her red hair sweeping down around her shoulders as she sat next to me. Putting an arm around my shoulder comfortingly, she said, "I was scared too when it happened to me, Emily. But I got through it, and I wouldn't change anything now. Listen, if you want it, we have a place for you here."

Professor Xavier nodded his head. "If your parents agree to it, we will help you train your powers and focus them, so that you won't worry about losing control."

Hank approached me, and I shrank back. He hadn't been scary when I thought it was a dream, but now that I knew he was real, he seemed much larger and his claws much sharper. Seeing my fear, he paused for a minute, then left the room. A pang of regret ran through me, but it was blotted out by all of my other worries. I gazed up at the Professor and replied shakily, "You're going to tell my parents? What if...what if they're scared of me now? What happens if my brother is like me and they kick him out?"

He smiled gently. "I doubt that they would, but even if they did, you and your brother would be welcome with us."

I let out the breath I had been holding and tried to calm myself. "Do you have a phone so I can call home and tell them to come here? They're all probably worried sick about me."

Scott shifted his weight and cleared his throat awkwardly. "They're on their way already. They should be here in a minute."

Jean closed her eyes for a second, then opened them. "Actually, they're here. Are you ready?"

My mouth went dry as she asked me. A minute to prepare would have been nice, but I nodded my head anyway and followed them out of the medical ward, to what I hoped were loving parents.

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A big thanks to all of my readers and reviewers! Anyway, sorry about the kind of abrupt ending. There is a second part to this chapter that will be up soon, but I had to end it here for now.

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	3. Practicality

I walked slowly after them, dragging my feet and hanging my head. I was probably the picture of misery. In what seemed like moments, even though it had to have taken a while, we reached the Mansion's foyer. I'd been asleep for a good amount of time, apparently, since it was night out. Looking through the window, I could just barely see my parents getting out of the family van. I squinted, but couldn't see Wyatt, my little brother. He was probably asleep at home, I reasoned. I wished fervently that they had brought him along, something I usually didn't want. I knew they wouldn't cause a scene if Wyatt was there though. Well, they usually wouldn't. Still, this wasn't exactly the usual news. At all.

I swallowed dryly as Jean opened the front doors, and hesitantly followed after them. I was standing behind the Professor, Scott, and Jean, but my Mom and Dad still managed to see me. Ignoring the people standing next to me, they rushed up. Mom swept me up into a hug, squeezing me until I could barely breathe, even as Dad wrapped his own arms around us. I leaned into them, stubbornly trying to keep tears from falling. Mom hugged me tighter, if that was even possible, and the dams broke. Tears flooded down my face,and my breath came in rough, choked sobs. I buried my face in their warm embrace, suddenly acutely aware that I was crying in front of one of the most popular girls in school. I felt Dad step away as I cried, and I could tell he was taking his normal protective stance. I didn't bother to look up; I knew his tall form would be hovering next to us. I giggled slightly at the mental image of my father with hummingbird wings. If that happened I probably wouldn't be too surprised, what with tonight's events. Correctly guessing that my sudden laughter was more than a little hysterical, Mom soothingly rubbed my back, even as she demanded answers from the Professor.

I winced slightly as my parents barraged them with questions, but I didn't speak up. I simply clung tighter to Mom, panicked that it might be the last time I could be their daughter. I dimly heard the Professor invite them in so that he could explain everything, and Mom gently prised me off of her. I kept close to my parents as we followed the Professor to his office. We stopped outside his door, and Scott leaned over to the Professor and said something quietly. I strained to hear, and was disappointed when I heard the word "bed." The Professor nodded, and Scott walked hurriedly away. Jean opened the door for us, and we walked through. Well, the Professor rolled/drove. We took the empty seats, while Jean stood at the Professor's side. He steepled his fingers, an action that I was quickly marking as his signature.

He began to speak, but Dad cut him off. "What is going on here?" he asked bluntly.

The Professor tilted his head slightly, as if attempting to figure out how to explain things without sounding like a complete loony. I doubted that he could manage it, but I could tell that he was going to give it his best shot. Sure enough, he said thoughtfully, "This may appear slightly...unbelievable. However, I ask that you listen with an open mind."

Mom took my hand and said quietly, "If it's a good explanation for Emily not coming from home from school and us being called up here in the middle of the night to see her so upset, I'm perfectly willing to consider anything."

The Professor nodded, and my stomach lurched as I saw that the moment of truth was rapidly approaching.

"Your daughter is a mutant."

My eyes widened. I didn't think the moment was approaching that rapidly. Mom's hand went slack around mine, and her lip drew together into a thin line. I winced as I saw Dad's eyebrows furrow. That really wasn't a good sign. He stepped up to the Professor's desk, and placed his palms flat upon the wooden surface, leaning in.

"Listen," he whispered forcefully, "I don't know what the hell your game is, but I expect you to explain yourself now."

Remarkably unruffled by my Dad's threatening posture, the Professor said, "A mutant is simply a human with different abilities. Your daughter manifested her powers yesterday, and we found her and took her in."

Dad nodded, then turned away. He took my other hand, lifting me from my chair as he said simply to the Professor. "We're leaving." he turned to Mom and continued, "Come on, Helen."

She stood up, but didn't follow us. Instead, her shoulders sagged and she said quietly, "He isn't lying, Jacob. Mutants are real."

I stared as she folded her arms, and a slight glow began to form around her, brightening until all of the shadows that the overhead light had left were eliminated from the room. Any fears I had of her hating me for being a mutant vanished as I realized that I had a glow-in-the-dark Mom.

Dad dropped my hand and stood dumbly for a moment, his surprised expression shared by everyone else in the room. My voice thick from crying, I muttered, "Well, I don't think any of us expected that." I smiled slightly as I saw Jean nod in agreement.

I watched in interest as Dad walked up to Mom, and touched her shoulder with an expression of wonder. Mom gazed unblinkingly back at him, waiting to be judged. The shock numbing my nerves wore off, and they returned in full force as I recognized that I might just witness my parents break up. My mouth went dry. If Dad rejected her, he wouldn't want me either.

He gathered her up in a hug, and I sighed in relief as he said with mild annoyance, "You should have said something, Helen. Do you know how much money we could have saved on flashlights?"

Dad always had been a practical man. Mom laughed, gently extricating herself from Dad's embrace. She turned to the Professor. "I trust that you don't mind if we head home now? I'm certain that we're all tired, and we can talk tomorrow."

"I...of course. I'll see you tomorrow."

My mind still heady with relief that no one was being kicked out of the family, I followed Mom and Dad out to the van.

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	4. The World Hates Me

I woke early the next morning. Suprisingly early, considering what had happened last night. As a matter of fact, I probably would have slept in until way late, except my cat, Kumquat, decided that my face made a nice seat. I growled groggily, which was probably less than impressive, and pushed her away. She meowed indignantly in protest, then leapt off my bed and strutted to my room's window.

I sighed and curled deeper into my covers, but couldn't go back to sleep. More than a little irritated, I peeled back the covers and stood up. I shivered in the cold air as I stretched, then shuffled over to my closet. I squinted as I dug through the clothes, finally picking out my favorite outfit: a short black vest with a white turtleneck and some boot cut blue jeans. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was comfy and good enough to leave the house in.I threw it on, and headed to the door of my room. My hand rested on the door knob, and I hesitated.

Breakfast would be hellish; I knew that Mom and Dad accepted me for being...for being whatever I was, but I still wasn't ready to see them. I spun on my heel, and strode to my window. I pushed it open, and smiled as Kumquat leapt onto the branch of the tree right outside. She had the right idea. I crawled out onto the branch with her, then carefully dropped down. I yelped in pain as my feet connected solidly with the ground, and quickly clapped a hand over my mouth. Kumquat dropped down beside me gracefully, and I scowled at the smug glint in her eyes as she sauntered off to go do whatever cats did in the day. Stupid cats and their stupid agility.

As I headed to leave, I caught sight of Mom and Dad in the kitchen. From the looks of it, they were having a serious talk. I knew that Dad had completely accepted Mom and I for being mutants or whatever, but I realized that they would still have to sort things out. Dad was probably even more confused than I was about the whole thing. I had no clue how they were going to explain it to Wyatt, either. I sighed quietly, and gazed up at his room. He was still asleep, the little lazabout. How I envied him.

Deciding that I should take advantage of my parents' distraction, I walked away. Even though I didn't mean to, my feet still took me to Tammy's house, which was only about a block away. I needed to anyway, so it was all good. She was undoubtedly wondering what in the world had happened to me. In my understanding, I had simply dropped off the map for a few hours without telling anyone. Somehow, I didn't think anyone had bothered to call her and tell her that I had shown back up safe and sound. I hovered on the sidewalk outside Tammy's house, struck by a thought. What did I plan to tell her? I couldn't really say that I was a mutant...somehow, I didn't see that scenario playing out well. Even if she did believe me, she would probably be terrified.

I drew my hand away from the gate, and spun around. I walked away a few feet, then broke into a sprint, hot tears cutting a path down my face. My tears blinding me, I ran for a long while. As I finally slowed down and got my bearings, I saw something terrible. In my mad dash, I'd ended up heading to the bad side of town. By that I mean, the side of town where you're bound to get shanked or raped if you don't know your way around. I really didn't know my way around. Thankfully, or possibly not so thankfully, no one seemed to be around. At least, I didn't think so. Hobos can blend in really well when they're in places like this. To be sure, I took a second scan, but all I could see were several broken windows, filth coated benches, and walls painted with graffiti. I still couldn't see anyone, so I took a step back. Two rock-hard arms wrapped around me, yanking me back into a dark alley, and I wondered silently how I didn't see that coming.

"Hello, little lady."

Ignoring his greeting, I attempted to stomp his toes. He tightened his arms around me, and I hissed in pains as I felt my ribs creak. Normally I would have been panicking, but the last time I'd gotten scared, I'd changed into a dumpster. That hadn't exactly helped me, so I figured my only choice was to wriggle away and escape the guy. As he practically had my whole body constrained, I did the only thing I could. I leaned over, and sank my teeth into his arm. He howled and let me go by way of throwing me into a brick wall.

As he clutched his forearm and I slumped dazedly against the wall, I got a good look at him. It was then that I felt my spine morph into jelly. The man was beyond huge. His hands alone were as big as hams, and his legs could've masqueraded as tree trunks. Even his hair was scary, with its ratty locks and filthy sheen. Still, it wasn't the hair or his size that gave me chills. It was his face. A scar ran from his left ear to his lips, the skin surrounding it a nasty red that made the blackness of his eyes stand out. He shook himself, then ed to me, a malicious smile stretching across his mouth as he saw the panic in my eyes.

"You should've played nice, pretty girl. Now you've gone and made me mad."

He took a step toward me, and I tried to stand, my shaky legs protesting. I touched the back of my skull, wincing as I felt a large bump and my fingers came away bloodied.

I held my hands up to the man placatingly and said, "Listen, just leave me alone, alright? If you just walk away right now, I won't tell anyone that you hurt me."

Threatening him was obviously the wrong thing to do. Instead of making his run away, it just got him pissed off. Curling his knuckles into a fist, he charged at me. At the last possible moment, I ducked, and his fist slammed into the wall. I lunged away between his legs, landing on my stomach a few feet away. He ed to me with a snarl, his hand dripping blood. I tried to scramble away, but he caught my foot. I screamed as I was dragged back, until his fingers encircled my throat. He lifted me unceremoniously into the air, my feet kicking uselessly against his meaty slab of a chest as I clawed at his hands.

As I struggled to breathe, I felt a familiar burning sensation. I gasped as I felt my skin unravel, and my body suddenly shot upward. The man yelled and dropped me to the ground, where I coughed helplessly. I slowly pulled myself up, realizing that I was the same size as the man. I blinked slowly, catching sight of my reflection in a piece of broken glass lying by the brick wall. I wasn't a short teenage girl anymore; I'd ed into an exact copy of the man I had been attacked by. Except I was wearing now ripped clothing and had a very tight ring digging into my skin. Ignoring those minor inconveniences, I slammed my fist into the man's head. Whether from the horror of seeing a person change into him or because I had just hit him extraordinarily hard in the skull I don't know, but he passed out. Seizing the opportunity, I kicked him in the ribs. Maybe it wasn't the most honorable thing to do, but it sure felt good. As I stared down at him with a mixture of triumph, fear, and shock, I changed back to my usual self.

As the events of the last few minutes began to sink in, I turned and ran away.

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	5. Decision

I managed to get home in record time, and literally crashed through the doors when I tripped over the top step. Mom drew in a sharp breath at my sudden appearance and Wyatt gave a little shriek, but Dad didn't seem that surprised. He did look pretty shocked at my rough appearance though. I'm not sure if it was the ripped clothing or the bloody smears, but he didn't seem to like it. I picked myself up off of the linoleum, and dusted myself off as casually as I could, which was actually very casually. I was fairly certain that my mind had shut down, otherwise I would have been on the floor blubbering. Before anyone could think to venture a question, I decided to speak.

"Mom...Dad, I think I need to see the Professor. I mean, really, really, really need to see him."

Dad raised an eyebrow, and Mom sighed a little bit, but they both seemed to understand that I wasn't quite ready for a chat. Wyatt, unfortunately, didn't understand anything like that unless you came right out and told him. He swallowed his toast and took a swig of orange juice as Mom and Dad stood up from the table, and asked, "What's up with you? And who's the Professor?"

Wyatt's inability to sense tension in a room never fails to amaze me.

"You wouldn't know who he is, Wyatt. Go over to a friend's house or something, we'll be back in a bit." In retrospect, it wasn't a good idea for me to phrase that as an order, especially since I was talking to Wyatt. He frowned and stood up, a petulant expression stamped on his face.

"I want to come."

I was about to protest, but Dad stepped in.

"We should take him along. It's better for us to tell him than to cover it up." It might have been my imagination, but I could've sworn Dad shot Mom a look. Normally I would've been investigating their behavior for any sign of marital discontent, but I had a bit on my mind. Namely, the assault that ended up with me changing into a big, burly guy. I'll admit that I haven't ever really been attacked on the street before, but I don't think fights usually result in a gender change.

With my mind busy scrambling about on overdrive, we piled into the van and took off. It didn't seem to take any time to reach the Institute, though we must have been driving for a few minutes at least. Wyatt had been uncharacteristically quiet on the drive, so he might've keyed into the atmosphere more than I thought. The Professor seemed to know that we were coming, since Jean was waiting on the front steps for us. Her eyes widened as she took in my disheveled appearance, and she gave me a sympathetic look.

"Are you okay?"

I glanced down at myself, and nodded rapidly. " I'm fine. Well, I mean, I've had better days, but I'm not dead or anything, so that's a plus."

She smiled at me, and gestured to the Institute.

"The Professor's in his office."

Taking this as an invitation, we headed inside to the Professor. Jean seemed lost in thought as we walked along, so I was a bit surprised when she spoke.

"You know, I was terrified when my powers advanced. I could've died, or killed someone that I loved. But the people here saved me, and never even thought to blame me for the destruction I caused. I don't know what I would've done without them. Everyone looks out for each other here."

I smiled slightly, and fixed my eyes on the back of Dad's head. I could tell what she was hinting, but I still wasn't sure. She had a point though; until I learned control, I was dangerous. And it wasn't like I wouldn't see my family. After all, they were just a short drive away. Admittedly, I didn't have a car yet, but I could always walk. I'd seen Jean at school too, so I knew I would be going as well. Nothing much would change, at least in theory.

I glanced at Wyatt so see if he'd heard any of Jean's speech, but he was transfixed by the majesty of the mansion. It was hard to blame him; the place was beautiful. If I hadn't been so out of it when I'd first been here, I would've been just as awed, if not more so.

As I considered the gigantic size of the place, a thought occurred to me.

"Where is everyone?"

I knew for certain that there were more people than just Scott and Jean here. I was sure that the girl with the white stripe in her hair came here, but I'd mostly been too intimidated to ever get to know her. I thought that the German kid went here too, since I'd seen him hanging out with Scott and Jean occasionally. That made four right there, and I wasn't even factoring in all the other people they were usually with.

"They're all out back practicing with Logan. I've told some of them about you, but you'll get to meet all of them today anyway."

That didn't make me any happier, but I grinned anyway. Jean stopped at the door to the Professor's office, and waved us in. The Professor frowned as he took in my appearance, raising an eyebrow.

"What happened?"

I looked over at Wyatt, who was staring curiously around the room. This would all sound insane to him, and I didn't know how to explain this to him. I knew Dad and Mom were too preoccupied to even be thinking about it. Apparently seeing my distress, Jean leaned over and said, "Do you want me to take him outside and tell him? I know you guys already have your hands full."

I nodded my head gratefully, and Jean led Wyatt out of the room. We all took a seat and I began to tell my story as succinctly as I could while trying to ignore everyone's eyes resting on me.

"I got attacked by a guy on my way home. He was a big person and I didn't have a weapon or a way to get a hold of everyone, so I thought I was done for. He threw me against a wall, and all I remember is that I was staring at him. He started to come towards me, when it felt like the first time before I woke up here. Then I turned into the man and...uh, I beat him up. And yeah, then I ran home and ended up here."

The Professor steepled his fingers, and leaned forward. Mom was gazing at me, and I could tell she wanted to hunt down the person who'd hurt me. Dad's expression was unreadable, but I could tell her was thinking something.

"What did the man look like, Emily?" I hadn't expected Dad to ask that, for some reason. Probably because I was hung up on the changing thing that had happened.

I put a hand to my face, tracing where the scar had been on the man. "He had a scar, right here. He was gigantic, with a meat-barrel chest and black eyes. Are you going to call the cops or something, Dad?"

Dad drew out his cellphone and nodded. "They might be able to get the guy. I'll be right back."

Mom watched as he stepped out of the room, then took the seat closest to me. The Professor looked me over, searching for any obvious cuts. Seeing none, he said, "Well, while I'm glad that you are alright, your powers are troubling. Right now, they are controlling you, when it should be the other way around. I would like to offer you a place here, at least until you feel safe enough to leave."

I drew in a breath, looking to Mom. She gripped my shoulder and said softly, "It's up to you, honey."

"I would like to stay here."

-------------------------------------------

I'm still not completely settled into the new place, so updates will be slower. Anyway, the Institute kids finally show up next chapter.

Also, I wanted to give a huge thank you to all of my readers and reviewers! You guys are amazing.

Everyone should totally leave me a review so I can know if my return chapter is good, or if I've lost a little something.


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